10 Quotes by Anthony Youn

We all have our beauty issues, and as we age, we take on more… battle scars, stretch marks, crow’s-feet, and laugh lines are all badges of honor, the beautiful patina of a fully lived life. There is nothing wrong with having any feature if it doesn’t bother you.

It may seem logical that if your skin is losing collagen, rubbing collagen on your face would help the problem, but unfortunately, the collagen molecule is too large to penetrate the skin. You are simply placing collagen on the surface, and this cannot change the skin’s structure.

Basically, exfoliation causes the cells to send signals to produce new skin cells. It also stimulates the production of new collagen fibers, replacing the damaged, irregular, and aged collagen fibers. Exfoliation can reverse the thinning of the collagen in the dermis that occurs with aging, and it also enhances the work of treatment creams and serums. This is why I prefer evening for exfoliation.

One of my best antiaging secrets couldn’t be simpler: Wear sunglasses! Sunglasses can filter out UVA and UVB rays and protect your delicate eyelid skin from sun damage. Sunglasses could even lower your risk of UV-related eye cancer, such as melanoma of the eye (ouch!). They also prevent the need to squint, which may slow the formation of wrinkles.

Humectant moisturizers attract water from the air and from deep in the skin to the visible layer of skin. These moisturizers aren’t as thick and heavy on the skin as occlusives, and they are less likely to clog pores, so they are better for people with acne issues. They plump the skin and reduce wrinkles, acting as instant wrinkle fillers. Some examples of humectants include hyaluronic acid, glycerin, lactic acid, propylene glycol, and urea.

There is even some evidence that eating a lot of tomatoes and tomato products can prevent sunburn. A recent presentation of research at the Royal Society of Medicine in London24 revealed that participants who added 5 tablespoons of tomato paste per day to their normal diet showed a 33 percent reduced risk of sunburn after twelve weeks!

Green tea may just be the most powerful of all antioxidant sources. Green tea contains polyphenols that scavenge free radicals and protect against photo damage. A 1997 presentation of University of Kansas research at the American Chemical Society national meeting found that antioxidants in green tea called catechins (a phenol) are more than 100 times more effective at neutralizing free radicals than vitamin C, and 25 times more powerful than vitamin E.

Unfortunately, aging, and especially aging combined with a history of childbirth, does a number on a woman’s breasts. Skin loses elasticity with age, and the thick, firm breast tissue of youth gets replaced by soft, shapeless fat, especially after having children and going through menopause. Breast-feeding can cause the breasts to undergo massive fluctuations in size, which stretches out the skin. Gravity works every second of every minute of every day to pull breasts downward.

Different skin types require different types of cleanser, but there is one common cleanser nobody should ever use: common bar soap. Soap often contains a drying surfactant called sodium lauryl sulfate, which can leave a film on your skin that feels uncomfortable, strip it of essential oils, and deplete moisture. Even worse, drying your skin can increase the appearance of wrinkles.